TimeyWimey
by CarryOnWaywardSonic
Summary: Intended as a one shot, but I think I'm just going to make a series of them instead. Please review
1. Chapter 1

The quiet humming of the TARDIS was interrupted by a mobile phone vibrating on the console. Rose Tyler-to whom the phone belonged- looked up from her book and giggled as the TARDIS' presence in her mind gave of a strange sensation. Rose was sure that if it could have been translated, it would have gone along the lines of "That tickles!"

She took her feet down off of the console and reached for her phone. A small spark and a muffled curse from under the controls told her that the Doctor was still making his "repairs." The truth, she knew, was that he was simply bored.

The text was short and stated simply,_ I'm outside_, but Rose knew who it was from immediately. Hell, she could have recited that number in her sleep.

Backwards.

She quickly got to her feet and made her way over to where the Doctor's legs were visible.

"Doctor?" She called. The only reply was more tinkering noises and a slight yelp as another spark flew.

"_Doctor!_" She called again, louder this time, poking him with her foot. He noticed her then (thankfully, Rose thought. She really didn't want to have to kick him) and rolled out from under the console, looking up at her impatient expression.

Rose suppressed a laugh when she saw him. The Doctor's hair-while normally messy- was now sticking up in every direction, his glasses skewed across his face. He caught her smiling and gave a mock-hurt look, straightening his glasses.

"What's up?" He asked, giving up on the whole 'offended' thing and grinning at her.

"Just poppin' out for a bit, yeah?" She answered. "And don't worry!" She hastily added, seeing his sceptical expression." I won't wander off or anything-even though we're only in the Estate and of the two of us I think I'm less likely to attract trouble- I just fancy a walk, ok?"

The Doctor shrugged, covering up his disappointment. Despite all he said to the contrary, he liked these quiet moments on in the TARDIS together.

"Sure, you don't need my permission. See you later then."

"See you later," She smiled at him and he watched her go, loneliness welling up inside him already. Dear Rassilon, when did _that _ happen?

Rose shut the door carefully behind her, before stumbling on something in the half-light. Kneeling down, she picked up a single pink and yellow rose, a bowtie wrapped around the stem. A small note read," _Come along then, Tyler…_"

Her face split into a smile and she eagerly looked around, wondering where he could be. She looked for a few minutes before noticing another rose tied to a telephone pole by the corner._ Blimey_, She thought._ That's a bit dangerous in itself, really._ If he got caught tying flowers to posts in the Powell Estate by the wrong people, he'd be lynched.

Rose rounded the corner carefully, wary of an ambush. She'd get him this time. Looking suspiciously over her shoulder, she continued on past some of the flats before being pulled into a bear-hug from behind. Letting out a half-squeal, half-laugh, she spun around as the arms released her.

"Got you again, Rose Tyler." He said playfully, not letting go of her hand. Rose groaned," Please don't make me say it again." She begged, knowing that it was no use.

"Oh, no. I won fair and square, and you have to respect that. You can make me say any number of embarrassing things when you catch _me_."

She sighed, closed her eyes, and recited,

" Oh, such is the doom of any mortal set against the mighty Oncoming Storm. How can I ever hope to best him in this epic battle of hide and seek?"

The Doctor laughed and pulled her into another hug. He hadn't changed at all really- at least from the last time Rose saw him- although it seemed the TARDIS had put her foot down (figuratively, of course) about his clothes.

He was wearing what he had taken to calling the 'Tuxedo of Doom' although he had replaced the jacket with a long tailcoat, which his current incarnation seemed to have a strange fondness for, and had seemingly won the battle with the TARDIS over a ridiculous red bowtie.

"Did you like my little surprise by the door?" He murmured into her hair. Two regenerations and still at least a head taller than her. Rose laughed softly.

"Pink and yellow roses? You're getting cheesy in your old age, Doctor."

He scoffed," Cheesy? Roses can never be cheesy. A pink and yellow rose for my pink and yellow Rose. And I'm going to make an effort not to be insulted by that 'old age' remark."

She gave a 'whatever-makes-you-happy' shrug and they stood there for a while, just holding on to each-other.

Rose pulled away and grinned at him, her tongue poking out between her teeth," You know," she said," We've really got to stop meeting like this. People will talk."

The Doctor grinned back," People," He replied, looping his arms around her waist," Do little else."

Rose pretended to think it over, sucking in a breath," _Weeell_," She began, drawing out the word in an imitation of the old Doctor. She put her arm around his shoulders, holding the rose with the other," In that case…"

**Hey Guys, it's me. Sorry to those of you who expected the next chapter of B.i.a.U.J but I've had major writer's block with that story lately. This was going through my head today so I had to write it down. Please review **

**-Kate**


	2. Chapter 2

The Doctor shuffled his feet a bit as he waited by the corner. He could see the old TARDIS over on the other side of the street. Curiosity had brought him here, along with a desire to see his old (slightly more than) friend again.

He remembered this day. He and Rose had just gotten back from the planet Renillion –why he took her _there _in the first place was still a mystery, the place was full of crime and petty thievery- and he had been angry with her for wandering off in the market place.

Of course, Rose hadn't realised that he was only angry because he had almost had a heart attack (or two) when he'd turned around to find her gone and imagined any number of horrific torture scenes or rapists, oh no, she assumed that he thought because she was _human _she couldn't get around by herself and needed someone to hold her hand through every step of their adventures.

Long story short, they had one of their bigger arguments back in the TARDIS, and Rose had stormed out the door, returning later in the evening.

She had never told the Doctor where she'd gone, even when they'd patched things up and were curled up on the sofa with tea and biscuits watching the Lion King yet again. His tenth self always _did _have a strange obsession with that film.

Of course, Rose might have just gone for a walk to clear her head, and didn't consider it worth telling, but the Doctor was too curious to let the matter rest.

He ducked behind the corner and peeked out as the doors of the TARDIS flew open and a voice could be heard," … Such a stupid ape then maybe you don't need me!" a second voice which he recognized as his own answered swiftly," Well go on then, leave! Maybe I'll finally have some peace and quiet!"

An empty threat, of course. He couldn't ever leave without her, or let her run away because of one argument. Maybe he was a coward, but he'd never let her go without trying.

"Fine!" Rose retorted," I know what you're like. You won't leave, I'll come back here and you'll still be waiting for me! And you'll be waiting for a long time, _Time-Lord!"_

Rose slammed the door shut, turned around as if to go, but just slumped back, leaning against the wooden doors with her hands over her face.

The Doctor wanted to go to her, but knew that even standing where he was at the corner was too close for safety. He was starting to get a headache from all of the possible paradoxes running around inside his head.

So he contented himself with watching Rose rub her face and march off down the street, taking care not to follow too close behind. He followed her for a while before she wandered into one of the local pubs. The Doctor was surprised. Sure, of course he knew that Rose drank, but normally only on special occasions. They used to go for drinks themselves sometimes, but it wasn't really the same as they would be on planets Rose had never heard of trying drinks with names she couldn't pronounce.

So it was with slight confusion that the Doctor followed her into the dimly-lit building.

After a few moments of looking, he spotted her sitting by the bar, a drink in front of her. However, she didn't seem to be paying it much attention.

He traipsed over to the bar and slumped down onto the seat next to her. She took no notice of him and continued staring at her drink, occasionally taking a sip.

This continued for about two minutes before the Doctor leaned over slightly and said," You know, it's not exactly healthy to drink your feelings."

Rose jumped, and looked up at him, recognition flooding her face as she gave a small, cheerless smile.

"Relax, your Holiness." She said," It's only Fanta." She accentuated the fact by taking another sip and rolling her eyes at him, amusement now surfacing.

The Doctor blinked. He hadn't expected that." Oh…" He responded lamely." Can I get one?" He asked hopefully. Rose laughed then, cheerfulness creeping back into the corner of her smile. She bought another drink for him, and they sat in silence, enjoying each other's company.

Rose broke the silence first. "You know you're being a complete git right now," she stated matter-of-factly.

He laughed," I'm going to assume you're talking about past-me, otherwise I'll remove myself from your company."

Rose didn't smile," Doctor." She said quietly.

He turned to face her." I don't think you're incapable of taking care of yourself, if that's what you thought." He assured. He looked at her, smiling a little. She fidgeted self-consciously. "What?" She inquired.

"Nothing, it's just funny. Rose Tyler, Defender of the Earth, one of the most brilliant people I've ever known and she hasn't figured it out yet." He mused.

"Figured _what _out?" Rose retorted. She was not in the mood to be talked down to.

The Doctor shook his head and looked concerned for a few moments, thinking he had said too much. He tried to cover himself by saying,

"Look, I know you can look after yourself, and so does he. That's all that matters. I care about you, Rose. You're one of my best friends. That's why I got so angry, I was thinking about having to explain to Jackie Tyler why her only daughter wasn't coming home."

Rose blinked. "So you've been like this with everyone you've travelled with, then?" She asked, feeling both relieved that the Doctor wasn't really angry with her, and slightly disappointed that the whole protectiveness thing was just 'part of the routine'.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair and was quiet. Rose noticed that he was shuffling his feet against the bar, as if wondering whether to speak or not.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor decided that she deserved the truth. He took a breath and said in a small voice,

"No."

Rose was confused," no what?" She asked. The Doctor looked as though it physically _hurt _to talk about this. One half of her couldn't really blame him. A few hundred years with no-one to talk to and she would have difficulty opening up as well. The other half was fed up with being shut out.

"I've always been protective of my friends, Rose. Maybe overly so. But with you it's like a whole new level. You made me better, and I suppose I'm scared that if anything happens to you, I'll go back to the way I was after the Time-War. As well as that, I just don't feel right without you beside me. I've told you before-or at least, I hope I have, timelines and all that- You need a lot to get across this universe. Warp drive, wormhole refractors, all that. You know what you need most of all? You need a hand to hold."

Rose was dumbstruck by the sincerity in his voice. He seemed so sad even at the thought of losing her, she suddenly felt guilty for running out on her Doctor. She was quiet, just thinking about what he'd said, before replying,

"Well, I shouldn't deprive your old self of my hand-holding services any longer then." She smiled and stood up from her seat, draining the last of her drink.

"Care to walk me home?" she asked, holding out her hand. The Doctor grinned at her and tweaked his bow-tie, taking her hand. Together they left the bar and left for the old TARDIS.

By this time it was quite late in the day, and the Doctor finally knew what had kept her out so long. They chatted about this and that on the way, and when they came into view of the old police box, he drew her into a hug and whispered," by the way, it's completely up to you, but my memory states that you made us tea and watched the Lion King with me."

"Not again," she groaned." We only watched that last week! What's the obsession?"

"If I ever understand it myself, you'll be the first to know," he replied with a wink. Rose rolled her eyes and just before she left, planted a kiss on his lips.

"See you 'round then, yeah?" She whispered.

" 'Course you will." He whispered back.

She smiled at him one last time and ran back to the TARDIS, hesitating only for a moment before opening the doors and slipping inside, sparing one small glance back to the other side of the street where he was standing.

The Doctor sighed and turned to leave, wondering absent-mindedly where exactly he had parked his own TARDIS.

**Hey guys, I haven't been very creative lately, so I'd appreciate it if you could send me a few prompts. I'll have a go at them if you do.**

**Thanks ^_^**

**(Kate: out)**


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